Rosenthal On Sveum, Yankees, Giants

The Cubs never hired Dale Sveum as a long-term answer in the dugout. Instead, he was brought aboard as a bridge to a big-name manager who would "complete the job" once the team was ready to win. Rosenthal says that both the Cubs and the skipper were aware of this when the hire was made nearly two years ago. Sveum has just one year remaining on his deal and it has been speculated that Yankees skipper Joe Girardi could be a candidate.

While the Yankees have been routinely criticized for their development of young talent, the 2006 draft stands as quite a success. However, notables Ian Kennedy, Mark Melancon, Zach McAllister, and George Kontos are now elsewhere. GM Brian Cashman was aware of the club's history of trading away promising young talent, which led to his disagreement with Tampa brass over the Alfonso Soriano deal. Cashman denies reports that say he opposed the trade but admits that he opposed the timing of it. He believes that if they waited until they got closer to Aug. 31st deadline, the Cubs would have taken a lesser prospect than pitcher Corey Black.

One rival executive expects the Giants to make a play for a Cuban free agent like Jose Dariel Abreu or second baseman Alexander Guerrero. The exec believes that the Giants have seen the impact of Cuban players Yasiel Puig and Yoenis Cespedes right in their own backyard and will look to join in this winter. It also helps that San Francisco is in need of some offense.